Drugs or integrity – sport’s dilemma
Shane Shackleton, former Roosters, Eels and Panthers first-grader, weighs the dubious benefits of drug use at the top level.
DetailsTrawler remains aground off Cronulla
The Challenge aground off Cronulla. An attempt to refloat a 23.5-metre trawler that ran aground on a reef at Cronulla Point has failed. Last night a salvage team attached lines to the stern of the Challenge to drag it off the rocks early this morning at high tide. A Sydney Ports spokesman told AAP that the…
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‘Thinspo’ leaves a bad taste in the mouth
Photo from Tollie Schmidt’s photostream: tollieschmidt There is nothing new about obsession with body image but the battlefront has relocated from magazines and our mirrors to the social media. The term “Thinspiration” – thinspo in short – is given to pictures, videos, blogs and quotes or any form of media that “inspires” girls to lose weight or to…
DetailsTwelve year olds bet on online video games
Children as young as 12 are stealing money to bet on casino-based video games online, according to psychologist Emil Hodzic. “These kids are gambling and also owe people money. When parents find out that their sons have been stealing to gamble, they are shocked,” he said. Betting on online video games is becoming a lucrative industry.…
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The people’s face is deepest red
Sex appeal personified? The online edition of The People’s Daily appears to have been taken in by a spoof story proclaiming Kim Jong-un, the North Korean leader, 2012’s Sexiest Man Alive. The Chinese Communist Party’s official newspaper appears to have taken the story seriously and run with it, reporting as fact the 29-year-old supreme leader’s supposed sex appeal – and…
DetailsWhy tomorrow’s journos need wider skills
Future journalists need to be multiskilled in an industry that has “changed beyond recognition”, according to a Sydney freelancer who has worked in the media for 25 years. Mick Toal, who has held various high-profile journalism positions, including online content editor at News Limited, believes aspiring journalists can no longer restrict themselves to reporting in just…
DetailsGen WHY no journalism job?
Professional journalists say there is a crucial lesson that graduate interns have not learnt in their studies – humility. The executive producer of Seven Network’s Sunrise, Michael Pell, believes the biggest mistake many interns make is feeling they are too skilled to complete tasks handed to them. “We often see a Gen Y that does not want…
DetailsSydney in the dark over diabetes day
Australian landmarks will light up today in support of World Diabetes Day (WDD) but Sydney is in the dark. The Australian Diabetes Council, which organises landmarks to be illuminated blue, the colour of the international symbol for diabetes, was unable to secure any sites for its cause in Sydney. Over the next 48 hours the…
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Gambling on a $12 billion reform
Australia has the highest rate of gambling in the world with 600,000 Australians playing poker machines at least once a week. Recent research shows 18-24 year olds spend more on poker machines than any other age group. Charlie Skelly, 20, began playing poker machines when he turned 18, literally. His first bet was on his 18th birthday. He…
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US voters legalise pot, gay marriage and more
Recreational marijuana use, same-sex marriage, porn actors forced to use condoms and the death penalty were among 170 changes to state laws voted on across the United States yesterday. Both Washington state and Colorado passed bills to regulate the sale of marijuana while Oregon rejected the proposal. In Washington, it is now legal for adults to…
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